Hercule Stout (324 of 1001)

Another beer from the 1001 beers list, you definitely know it’s Christmas when I start making inroads on the list since it’s about the only time of year I get to drink them. This is one that I picked up earlier in 2015 from Good Spirits Co. in Glasgow when I spotted it was one of the few beers from the 1001 list that I hadn’t tried when I stopped by the shop around Easter time. I knew it would be one that I would end up holding on to for a couple of months before trying and Christmas seems like as good a time as any to see how it rates. The beer is an unfiltered imperial stout and will be the first offering from the Ellezelloise brewery (est. 1993) that I will have tried so I’m looking forward to it. It proclaims itself to be the only ‘Belgian stout’ and is considered a classic, taking its name from the fictional Belgian detective, Hercule Poirrot. Only brewed in small batches and lagered for ten days in oak casks, the beer is brewed with spices or sugars being added. It’s also a beer that I’m glad to have picked up as it’s not one that I’ve seen anywhere else since purchasing it.

Appearance (5/5): Pitch, opaque black in colour with a creamy, beige looking head that sits at just under a centimetre tall. Head retention is good with the original height holding well over the opening few minutes without much movement and there is a little lacing stuck on the sides too.Aroma (8/10): Quite a strong-smelling beer, this one opened up with some ripe, dark fruits early on that gave the beer quite a sweet smell; there was some figs, dates and plums all present at the start along with a fair amount of cherries too. It was slightly sweeter than expected but the balance seemed good thanks to some nice roasted malts and coffee notes that appeared around the middle, although both took a backseat to the fruity esters really. Towards the end there was some funky notes and a little acidity that I hadn’t been expecting but that settled down once the beer had sat for a while and opened up.Taste (9/10): This one was more malty than the nose indicated with some nice roasted flavours coming through alongside an almost lactose like aroma that reminded me of a milk or sweet stout. This was followed by some nice sweetness and caramel touches around the middle and a little coffee backing them up without overpowering. The beer seemed creamy with some lighter chocolate flavours before the dark fruits from the nose started to appear towards the end but they definitely didn’t seem as pronounced this time round.Palate (5/5): Quite a creamy beer with a medium to full body and soft carbonation. The beer had an excellent balance, the sweetness from the fruits complimenting the darker, roasted flavours well and nothing seemed to overpower. There was a slightly warming feel, particularly towards the end, from the alcohol but the beer was well-rounded with tonnes of flavours and complexity; excellent stuff.

Overall (17/20): Another very nice Belgian beer with plenty of flavour coming through and thankfully the balance was excellent as well with helped this go down very easily for a 9% abv. beer. There was plenty of dark fruits to start, particularly on the nose and I also got a slight acidity that I hasn’t counted for but it wasn’t unwelcome either. The roasted flavours seemed to take more of a front seat as things rolled on and the beer was quite creamy with a beautiful mouthfeel; another excellent imperial stout.